Warwick Goble was a Victorian illustrator who enjoyed his greatest success during the early decades of the 20th century when there was a great demand for colour plate illustrations. One of his earliest commissions was for H G Wells War of the World’s in 1898. His specialisms however, were fairy tales and exotic stories of the East and he is best known for his magnificent watercolour illustrations for a variety of children’s books between 1909  and the early 1920′s. The images I have for you today are taken from the 1912 publication of Folk Tales of Bengal by Rev. Lal Behari Day.

Click any image to see the full size on Flickr.

She rushed out of the palace and came to the upper world

They then set out on their journey

In a trice she woke up, sat up in her bed, and eyeing the stranger, inquired who he was

She took up the jewel in her hand, left the palace, and successfully reached the upper world

The Girl of the Wall-Almirah

They approached a magnificent pile of buildings

I find it strange that Goble is not as well known as some of his contemporaries such as Arthur Rackham and Edmund Dulac given the stunning quality of his work. He continued working into the late 1920′s illustrating Treasure Island and Kidnapped for Macmillan. He died in 1943.

Folk Tales of Bengal contains 32 colour plates in all. You can view the full set on Flickr by clicking HERE.